Month: September 2017

I moved out of state, and had to rent my relatively new Georgia condo. I only lived in it for 7 months, and left the place in pristine condition. I rented it on a yearly lease out to a a girl, no pets, and she stayed there for 9 months, before giving me a 30 day notice. So, I put my condo up for sale, and had my realtor do an inspection with her, and take photos for me.Several burnt out light bulbs were not replacedMarks on one of the walls. These walls were freshly painted last year.Oven not cleanedMy condo has wooden floors throughout. In the kitchen, the baseboards shifted?!? and displayed the concrete underneath. How the hell could that even happen?Damage to two of the bathroom door panels due to hanging rods.Grouting in the kitchen – I understand that could happen, but this was freshly done last year as well!Scratch on the wood floor. She put a carpet on top, but how could that happen?I’m surprised at some of the damage that occurred just after 9 months of living. How should I go about addressing these concerns with her since i have a deposit to return? Thanks, just looking for advice

I’m going through a divorce and plan on renting out the house we’ve been living in once everything is finalized. It’s a cookie-cutter 4BR 2500sf in a rapidly developing small city in SoCal.The house is far from perfect. The baseboards are in ill-repair throughout the house, and there are many dents/holes in the drywall. We used plastic wire covers for wiring solutions for home theater, so these plastic things are stuck to the wall and when I take them off, some paint will come with them. I have some nails that are literally stuck in the wall and won’t come out.I’m not handy at all. My question is, how pristine does a property need to be before I should try to rent it out? There are at least 5 walls throughout the house with spackle-covered holes that I could re-paint a brand new color. I don’t know what color/finish the walls were originally painted in.On the other hand, I suppose I could let prospective tenants know that they can paint the walls however they want upon moving in. Sort of leaves these issues in their hands.On the other other hand, I’m sure many landlords would say that it’s my responsibility to get everything squared away before even trying to rent it out.Again, as someone not handy in the least bit and inexperienced with this, how would you proceed?To preemptively answer why I want to rent out the house instead of selling it, the answer is because we have negative equity. We’ve only had the house for one year and would likely not break even if we sold it now.Thanks in advance folks.

Hello All,I am out searching for my first home, going to open houses, etc. I do not understand what an agent is doing for me other than paperwork for the transaction eventually (and I know it’s not short paperwork). I do not want someone calling me with homes to pitch, with questionable alternative motivations, etc. I don’t even care that they find properties before I do, the potential conflict of interest and just the “used car salesman” aura around so many of these people (not all), disgusts me, only driven home by how few seller’s agents will show a home without you having an agent.Why do I need to deal with an agent and pay extra for the house so they can get their 3% for the seller?

Yet another interesting headline in the world of health and well-being. The Voyager Golden Record Finally Finds An Earthly Audience
For 40 years, the record’s interstellar message to extraterrestrials remained mostly unheard by human audiences — until a Kickstarter campaign brought a new vinyl box set to the public.

I’m trying to check a rationale I’m hearing about the Seattle real estate (likely applies to other hot, competitive markets) against some uninterested parties.When I’m doing mortgage rate shopping I’m generally seeing much more competitive rates from national and online banks. Local banks have generally been higher. All else being equal, seems like a no brainer to go with national/online.Yet when I speak to agents or local banks, they claim that sellers will always take a local bank first, and that our bid will be at the bottom of the stack. They mention things about faster closing and that seller agents have developed relationships and trust with local banks.Is this in fact the case? It seems plausible, but curious how strong this preference is and if in fact we’d have practically no chance with a national/online bank as the locals are saying.

There is a house down the street from where I own a house out-of-state that is up for sale as a foreclosure auction. However, it is currently occupied by a family who is unrelated to the owner (I think, as they are black and the owner is white). I am trying to ascertain the value of the property and what my cash-for-keys offering or extension of lease may be. A few questions that I am not sure about. The price is good, so that is why I am interested…1) How do I find a copy of the tenant-landlord lease as a third party? I don’t have a problem with the tenants, but I need to find out the current rental price, but the owner is dead and the bank doesn’t care.2) If they refuse to give me the lease once I own the property or if they do not have it, can I evict them? How do I know they aren’t just squatting?3) If I do want to terminate the lease, what rights do I have, now that the house has gone through the foreclosure process? I am pretty sure I cannot just evict them without cause, but what notice should/must I give?https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2017/bills/house/1294 (This says 90 Days)Any other foreseeable problems?Thank you in advance!

First, I’ll tell you that I’ve been looking for some land that can be used for vacationing/hunting/relaxing/etc. I work in IT and would like to have a place to escape technology and the city life. I would use an RV or build a small cabin on the plot.My search has led to me to several websites that offer acres of land for no more than a few thousand dollars. Not only is it cheap, but it’s completely isolated, it’s exactly what I want.My question is about the potential pitfalls of these lands. I’m aware of tax obligations (many of these lots are less than $100/yr according to the websites). I am not looking to invest; I don’t expect a financial gain, and it will be for recreational purposes only.I fully understand that these places are likely hours from civilization and have no access to plumbing, electricity, or water. My only margins will be in fresh air. That said, what do I need to know about these lands and the companies that sell them?

So I’m considering getting my real estate license. I currently live in Georgia, but I’d want to get my license in Utah since I’m planning on moving and I have some properties there. I’ve done some research and it seems that you have to get a pre-license. I wasn’t sure if this was state-specific. Since I have to be in Georgia for now, I wanted to get a jump start and I wasn’t sure if I can start my finish my pre-license in Georgia and then complete the rest of the certification in Utah.Thanks for your input!*meant to type seeking not seeing in the title…

Fairly new realtor here in Indiana, going on just over 2 years with 40 transactions under my belt. I want to know what are the most important things when someone chooses a realtor to help them buy or sell a house.Thanks so much for your input.